Page 8 of Generation Lost

“Why are you taking her house down?” asked Tailor.

“She’s behind on the mortgage,” grinned one of the men. “Bank says it’s all theirs now to do with what they will.”

“Show me the papers,” said Gabe. The men frowned.

“What?”

“Papers, you idiot. Where are the papers that say the bank now owns this property, leaving no alternative for this woman to pay her mortgage.”

“I have to pay it off by today at five,” she sniffed, tucked beneath Vince’s arm. “There’s no way I can. It’s thousands of dollars.”

“Where’s the payment information?” asked Skull. The men stared at one another, then back at the group of men.

“You’re signing your death warrant if you do this. And hers.”

“You fucking touch this woman again, and I’ll beat your body to the point of unrecognition. No one will know what the bloody mess is on the floor. Where is the payment information?”

“It’s on my counter,” said the woman.

Skull pushed past the men, stepping inside the small home. It was neat and well cared for, reminding him of his grandparents’ old home. He spotted the mortgage statement on the counter and called the number.

“Midwest Mortgage,” said the man, answering the call.

“I’m calling to pay the mortgage for Miranda Best,” said Skull.

“Uh. What did you say?”

“You heard me, you fucking asshole. I’m paying the mortgage. All of it.”

“Uh, sir, no, the bank owns the mortgage now.”

“Not until five o’clock, and I’ve got eleven minutes,” said Skull. “Now, you can take my payment information, or this recorded phone call will be turned over to the FBI.”

“Hey! You can’t record my conversation without my permission,” he yelled.

“And you can’t tear down a woman’s house before the time listed on the notification. Take my fucking payment over the phone now.”

“Fine. Fine,” he said. “How much are you paying?”

“All of it.”

CHAPTER FIVE

“What do you mean you let him pay the entire amount?” yelled his supervisor.

“I didn’t have a choice. He quoted all these laws and threatened to call the FBI, and then I spoke to the boys, and they said there was a whole bunch of big men standing there, ready to stop them. He paid the mortgage off. In full. Every last penny of it. She owns that house outright now.”

“I don’t need it paid off! I need that land,” said his boss. “You fucking idiot! I have to do everything myself.”

Grabbing his car keys, he left the building and headed over to the site. There were only eleven homes left to be demolished, and then this sale would be complete. The first thing he noticed was there was nothing happening. None of the bulldozers or other machines were working, all of the men gone home.

As he turned onto the street, he spotted the old woman’s house and the men standing on her front porch. His construction workers were gone for the day, and he was pretty certain he knew why.

“You need some help, mister?” asked Skull.

“No, but I think you do. Who the fuck do you think you are buying out this mortgage?” he frowned.

“Me? Oh, I’m her long, lost nephew, and I need a place to live. So me and Auntie here are gonna be roommates for a while.”

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